hardest hit areas of tornado alley, sifting through miles of debris, all that's left from so many communities and lives ripped apart by the storms. >> tragic, terrible. i mean, it's just like one minute you're here and then you're gone. >> reporter: a disaster spread by at least 100 tornadoes that left deep, painful scars across at least a dozen states. >> he was the greatest love of my life. >> reporter: cheryl pickett's husband, ron, wasn't supposed to be home when the storms hit. >> he shouldn't have been here. he came home early from work because he didn't feel good and wanted to take a nap. >> reporter: he died when a twister ripped apart their home. now cheryl, who had been planning a celebration for their 40th wedding anniversary -- >> we were going to have a hell of a party. >> reporter: now, instead, she must prepare for a funeral. across tornado alley, for many, the only thing left to hold on to is each other, and they understand they are the lucky ones. >> we're all okay. that's all that matters. >> reporter: as they work through the haunting images of

what's happened here and the painful reality that's left behind. jay gray, nbc news, henryville, indiana. >> through all the death and destruction, there are also stories of survival. a 2-year-old was found wandering in a field in salem, indiana. her entire family was killed in the tornadoes and her home was destroyed. the little girl is currently in critical condition and the hospital is taking donations to help her out. the red cross responded immediately to the devastation, opening new centers in 11 states to help those affected by the tornadoes. in fact, news4's derrick ward joins us live from the red cross on east-west highway in silver spring, maryland. derrick, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning. as is often and always, really, in the aftermath of the devastation like we're seeing with those tornadoes, there are those heart-wrenching stories of loss and harrowing stories of survival, like that toddler. well, now it is time to turn that empathy into action. take a look at that scene.

39 people dead across indiana, kentucky, alabama, georgia, ohio, tennessee, and estimates are that about 95 twisters actually did touch down. and the red cross immediately opened up shelters across those affected areas, and some as far north as parts of virginia. and of course, surviving the tornadoes is just the beginning. there are the immediate needs after that -- material, they need blood donations, shelter, even mental counseling for those who survived. and that's where the red cross comes in. and they're actually making it easier to help wherever you are. >> you have your cell phone and you want to text 90999, text the words "red cross." $10 will be taken off of your bill, and that money will go to help the victims of this disaster or other disasters that might happen around the country and around the world. >> reporter: now, again, we want to show you that information. you text the word "redcross,"

one word, 90999. that triggers a $10 donation that will show up on your cell phone bill. you can also go to the red cross's website, go to redcross/safeandwell and you can click on "search for friends and family," if you happen to know someone or are worried about someone who may have been touched by all this. a lot of resources through here, a lot of rebuilding to do in the days that follow. in silver spring, derrick ward news4. >> thanks so much, derrick. we were just talking about that earlier, about the easiest way to help out. there you got it, text 90999 to the red cross and be able to help out some folks. >> no doubt about it, they need all the help they can get out there. they've had a tough go of it. for us, we don't really have any bad weather coming our way, but there's a chance for a little rain down across parts of southern maryland today. that's going to be just about it. cloudy outside first thing on your sunday. excuse me. a little bit more sunshine the further north and west you go, but more cloud cover down to the south and to the east. temperatures now upper 30s and low 40s, but there's a little

bit of a breeze out there. and as a result, a little hint of a windchill this morning. windchills in the upper 20s to low and mid-30s, so a little bundle-up factor early this sunday morning. a couple sprinkles in southern st. mary's county, all part of a larger storm system which is going to be missing us to the south primarily, but still has a chance to throw a couple little rain drops into southern maryland, snow showers out across parts of ohio will not be bothering us. so, a mix of clouds and sunshine today, more sun the further north and west you go from washington, far more cloud cover down across southern maryland where you might even see a sprinkle. temperatures today will top out in the upper 40s to right around 50 degrees. you can see some filtered sunshine getting through the cloud deck here in washington this morning. then tomorrow, back to work and school, everybody. still a chance of a few light snow showers mainly down, not just mainly down, but completely down to the south of washington. might be able to get almost a half an inch of snow somewhere between fredericksburg and richmond tomorrow, but i think that's going to be just about it. not looking for any real cancellations or problems as a result of it, but you know, this

winter without winter, we have to at least talk about snow whenever we can. >> every flake counts. >> every -- i know i'm counting them. the sad part is you can actually count them! >> thank you, chuck. >> okay. in "decision 2012," presidential candidate mitt romney wins the washington state republican caucuses. romney easily won saturday's caucuses with a double-digit victory. romney came in first place with 38% of the vote. ron paul and rick santorum came in second and third with just 1% separating them at 25% and 24%. newt gingrich came in a distant fourth with 10%. this is romney's fourth win in a row. with a washington state victory in hand, romney heads into super tuesday with momentum. on tuesday, seven states will hold primaries, including virginia, where gingrich and santorum failed to qualify for the ballot. three states will hold caucuses. 419 delegates are up for grabs, and that's more than a third

needed to clinch the republican nomination. romney and the rest of the candidates have their eyes on ohio now, which has the most delegates at stake amongst the ten contests. ohio's largest newspaper, "the plain dealer" of cleveland, endorsed romney. romney and santorum made campaign stops across the state. >> we've got good people running for office, but you know, these other guys have spent their life in government. nothing wrong with that. it's just that right now, with our economy in distress, with jobs so badly needed, with incomes having gone down, we need a president who knows the economy to fix the economy. >> this is a marathon, not a sprint. we're going to keep working. we're doing well, and we feel like this race is narrowing just like it should be. >> santorum is shaking off news that incomplete paperwork will keep him from winning at least nine of ohio's delegates. >> but santorum and romney are heading into ohio in a dead

heat. both are tied with 32% in the latest reuters poll. gingrich comes in third with 17%. ron paul comes in fourth with 6%. >> this morning, moderator of "meet the press," david gregory, joined us on set and he talked about why ohio is so important to romney. >> it's not only the delegate math, but it's also his ability to say, if he can win ohio, that he's won florida and ohio, big battlegrounds for the fall. and ohio's a state, like michigan, where santorum could mount a very effective campaign. that's why the polls are so tight. so, i think that's why that's being very closely looked at. >> stay with news4 for "meet the press." presidential candidate newt gingrich along with republican congressman eric cantor and democratic congresswoman debbie wasserman schultz will be on the program today. that's at 10:30 this morning right here on nbc 4. days after making degrading comments about a georgetown law school student, rush limbaugh has apologized for his remarks. last week, the conservative

radio host made some controversial comments towards sandra fluke. fluke testified to congressional democrats about the debate over birth control and catholic institutions. limbaugh released a statement on his website that said, "my choice of words was not the best, and in the attempt to be humorous, i created a national stir. i sincerely apologize to ms. fluke for the insulting word choices." the radio host tried to reach out to fluke by phone and e-mail but she has not responded. and the time right now is 9:08. good morning. thanks so much for joining us. stolen valor. how one local couple is trying to honor real american heroes while busting frauds who are poti posing as them. and you may use facebook to catch up with old friends and classmates, but one husband and wife from our area is using the social networking site to grow their family. we'll explain when we return. hi. welcome to carmax.

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virginia police arrested more than 30 pro-choice activists at the state capitol. they were part of a group of about 35500 protesting a bill tt will require women to get an ultrasound before getting an abortion. police say the group had a permit to rallies but rallies are not allowed on the capitol steps. the bill passed virginia's general assembly last week and governor bob mcdonnell is expected to sign it into law soon. joe arpaio, the controversial arizona sheriff that has released his report on president obama's birth certificate as part of a new book. the report is featured in a book by jerome corsi, a political conspiracy writer who also believes president obama's birth certificate is a fake. the book, "a question of eligibility," is for sale as an ebook through amazon and barnes & noble. a spokesman for president obama apparently didn't think much of

the report, responding by tweeting out a link to the popular tv series "the x files." the supreme court is now considering the constitutionality of a law that punishes people for lying about receiving medals of honor from the military. and incredibly, the military does not have an official registry for medal recipients. >> you're right, erika, nothing of the sort exists, but a couple in alexandria is hoping to change all that after a silver star awarded to the husband's best friend was stolen. in 1973, specialist jamie pachenco was killed in vietnam. it's what happened after the decorated soldier's death that put his best friend on a lifelong mission. >> in 2005, a man in california took my closest friend's silver star citation, put his own name on it. >> reporter: doug sterner and his wife have exposed countless people posing as medal recipients, and they are also the only ones tracking the real heroes.

sterner spends up to 14 hours a day building an online database of veterans, a list of all their awards. this week, he testified before congress, criticizing the department of defense for not having one. >> i have had cases of highly decorated heroes nearly turned away from arlington national cemetery because their branch of service didn't have a record of their award. >> reporter: the sterners recently found themselves in the middle of a national debate surrounding the controversial congressional act. a college paper hand-wrote in 2006 is considered a blueprint for the law that bans lying about military honors. recently, a california lawmaker was prosecuted for pretending to have been awarded the medal of honor. >> this isn't grandpa telling a war story. this is a con man telling a lie to defraud other people. >> reporter: sterner says he's uncovered 2,000 similar cases, but his focus now isn't on finding frauds, it's finding

help to complete his work. >> i wish we didn't have these, because every time i have to deal with a stolen valor case, that takes away hours that i could be typing up the historical record of a real heroic man or woman. >> sterner's database is called "the hall of valor," and we have a link to that site on our websi website, nbcwashington.com. a maryland couple is turning to social media again to help them find another bundle of joy. now, you may remember that we introduced you to seth, melissa and noah two years ago. the kensington couple had challenged conceiving, so they decided to adopt, but they didn't go through an agency. they wanted a private adoption and found noah's biological mother through a facebook ad on seth's page. now the couple is looking for a little sister or brother for little noah. >> no difference whether you have a biological child or you adopt a child. you love this child so much.

>> when melissa and seth found noah, seth had only about 40 friends on facebook, but that's all he needed. the couple says they are willing to wait for another perfect baby to come along. fantastic story of the proper use, good use of social media. that's awesome. >> facebook growing families. >> that's right. that's one way to adopt a kid that way. and of course, our wednesday's kid, 1-88-2-adoptme. another home that could be completed. not to mention a little chance for some sunshine today and some snowflakes tomorrow. we'll talk about that next.

well, it looks like we might have a bit -- i can't get my words out -- >> a bit of winter. >> i was trying to say, bit of winter, maybe more sunshine all

at same time. maybe more sunshine today? there we go. >> get it out, erika. >> we won't have as much as yesterday. yesterday turns out we got the bonus sunshine on a saturday, made it to 63, so that was a great change. >> but you have something in your forecast involving some sunshine. >> a little something to talk about, at least. that may be all it ends up adding up to it just a little something to talk about monday morning. a chance of a few snowflakes mainly down to the south. i don't think we'll even see a snowflake inside the capital beltway, but south of town, along i-95, can't rule out a few flakes south of fredericksburg tomorrow. show you that on futurecast in a minute. outside right now, some filtered sunshine getting through our sky here in washington. more sunshine for you folks in montgomery county, out towards the mountains of west virginia. bright and sunny in many neighborhoods this morning. but from our fair realm here inside the beltway down into southern maryland, the clouds really thicken up quite a bit. 42 our current temperature now here in town, northwesterly winds at 14 miles per hour. that's going to continue to usher in that cool air for the rest of the day.

so, even with our bonus sunshine here this morning, a little bit of it, anyway, i don't think temperatures will get anywhere near even 50 degrees, let alone 63 like yesterday. 37 in leesburg, 40 dulles, 40 reston town center, 41 springfield, virginia this morning. into montgomery county, gaithersburg, rockville, silver spring, bethesda all upper 30s to 41 in college park. out towards the blue ridge where there's a little bit more sunshine, temperatures are still only in the mid-30s. here's our "sunday planner." more sun north and west, more clouds to the south and east. temperatures today topping out upper 40s to maybe around 50 degrees in a few lucky spots. light rain showers possible across parts of southern maryland as this storm system is racing out to sea. just a little chance of light rain today, but definitely more cloud cover in southern maryland. there's our little alberta clipper that's going to be racing just down to our south during the course of the day tomorrow. here it is on the satellite picture. there are the thin spots in the overcast, just to the north and west of washington, the thicker clouds, lower cloud decks down

into parts of southern maryland. for today, plenty of clouds with a little sun here and there. any shower chances are in southern maryland for today. cold overnight tonight and here comes that little alberta clipper racing right along the virginia/north carolina border tomorrow, mid to late morning. snowflake chances may get as far north as about fredericksburg. that's going to be just about it. and then it's out to sea. we might even see breaks of sunshine before tomorrow is done. so, for today, more clouds than sun, chilly, sprinkles in southern maryland, highs today upper 40s to near 50. then tomorrow, plenty of clouds around, especially in the morning, and a chance of a few snowflakes down south of town. but again, don't waste your day coming up with names for the snowman. you're not going to need it. then your extended forecast. staying on the cold side of average here for monday and tuesday. then things warm right back up again as we get into midweek. temperatures near 60 on wednesday and mid-60s for thursday and friday. you can always stay ahead of the weather, come into our website. i'll be updating our mention of snowflakes somewhere close to us as opposed to a snow forecast,

and also the latest on our weather headlines and things like that, @chuckbell4 is my twitter handle. >> a sprinkling of it. thanks, chuck. appreciate it. among the heartbreak in indiana, there have been a few heart-warming reunions with families and their four-legged friends. in marysville, a family was reunited with their cat after losing their home and most of their farm. and in henryville, a dog was found in the rubble of a home, seemingly okay. the rescue happened on live tv during a report from the weather channel's jim cantore. the dog was taken to an emergency room and is said to be in good condition this morning. fantastic news from that. >> great story. the time right now 9:23. still ahead, police finally arrest a man they say was behind the wheel of an accident that killed a teenager. this morning, we're hearing from that teen's grandmother about what the family has been through. and a former redskins coach accused of paying players to hurt their opponents while coaching other teams. why the nfl is now turning its

investigatio

super tuesday, new nbc polls and the latest jobs report. on monday, the latest nbc/"wall street journal" poll is released. on tuesday, it's super tuesday. 424 delegates are up for grabs in 11 states across the country. romney hopes to seal the deal with wins in as many as seven states. santorum needs a strong showing to have a chance at upending romney's drive to the nomination. the biggest prize is 76 delegates out of georgia, where gingrich is putting all of his chips. but the place where the eyes of the political world will be focused will be ohio. on friday, the latest jobs report is released. there have been five straight months of declining unemployment, and the trajectory of the economic situation in this country is likely to be the most important factor for who wins the white house in november. that's it for me. i'm domenico montanaro and that's your look at "the week ahead."

good sunday morning, everyone. welcome to "news4 today." i'm angie goff. >> good morning, everyone, i'm erika gonzalez. at least 39 people are dead and hundreds more injured from this weekend's tornadoes. the twisters ripped through the south and midwest, doing major damage in indiana and kentucky. the red cross has already set up shelters in 11 different states to provide food, water and other resources to those affected. another victory for mitt romney. the former massachusetts governor won yesterday's washington caucus. it was the gop white house hopeful's fourth straight primary victory and his third win of the week. he and the rest of the republican candidates are now focusing on the ten states up for grabs this tuesday. rush limbaugh apologized for degrading comments he made about a georgetown law student. the conservative radio host insulted sandra fluke, who testified about the current birth control debate. limbaugh said he was trying to

be funny and apologized to fluke for his poor choice of words. a driver who left the scene of a deadly crash in prince george's county is now in custody. police arrested 21-year-old deron britt in the district. police say he is the driver of an suv that crashed into a tree on suitland road two weeks ago. 18-year-old tyesha williams was ejected from a vehicle and died on the scene. her family now has a little bit of closure, since the man police say is responsible is in custody. >> and then to leave people on the scene in a wreck like that and don't know what the outcome is, and it's just unfortunate that my granddaughter was the one that died. >> i'm just glad that he's locked up. pd doesn't have him yet, but he is in custody. >> britt is being held on a gun charge. prince george's county police say they have a warrant on file charging him with manslaughter. a driver crashed into a

fast-food restaurant in montgomery county. check out the damage. the car crashed into a pizza hut along georgia avenue in silver spring yesterday afternoon. the crash shattered some windows and doors and sent glass flying everywhere. fortunately, though, nobody was hurt. the windows were boarded up and the restaurant was able to remain open for business. hundreds gathered at a church in chardon, ohio, to say good-bye to one of the students killed in a high school shooting. 16-year-old daniel parmertor was laid to rest yesterday. friends and family remember him as a computer whiz who loved to laugh. students lined the streets around the church, holding signs that said "we are one heartbeat." the families of the three victims have all agreed to donate their organs. the other two boys killed in the attack will be laid to rest this week. the nfl is investigating former redskins defensive coordinator gregg williams for allegations he paid players to hurt opponents. "the washington post" reports williams, who was with the

redskins from 2004 to 2007, would pay players in cash to knock out opponents during games. williams is now defensive coordinator for the st. louis rams. he apologized on friday for having a similar program while he was the assistant coach with the new orleans saints. some former redskins came to the defense of williams, saying it simply encouraged hard work and clean football. all right, now an update on a story we brought to you yesterday. officials for cvs say only a few children took breast cancer pills that were mistakenly dispensed to them. the pharmacy accidentally gave them breast cancer medication instead of fluoride pills. investigators are still looking into how the pharmacy mixed up the prescriptions for as many as 50 families. luckily, no injuries were reported because of the mistake. right now, voters in russia are heading to the polls. former president and current prime minister vladimir putin is expected to win the election, making him president once again.

there have been accusations of voter fraud before this election, as some believe putin was working to fix the vote to ensure he would become president. now, if he wins, putin would replace dmitry medvedev. putin said in the past that he would appoint medvedev as prime minister if he does win. some protesters say they will fight for a recount if putin does claim victory. and this morning, crews are searching for bodies in a deadly train crash. two trains on the same track collided head on in southern poland. 15 people died and 56 were injured, making it the worst train disaster in poland in more than 20 years. a polish railway official says one of the trains was on the wrong track, but it's still not clear why. and chocolate lovers unite! you may want to indulge your taste buds with some delicious chocolate confections. the annual chocolate lovers

festival is under way in the city of fairfax. it's happening at the old town hall. the taste of chocolate runs from noon to 4:00 today, four hours. can we just get -- can i just get an iv and have that stuff pumped in, please? >> a whole village of chocolate right there. four hours? i could spend four hours at a chocolate festival. >> yeah. and then i think you would spend the next four months on the hips and -- >> working it off, right? >> yeah. >> those cake pops look good. all right, well, the time right now is 9:33. it is one of the world's most valuable companies and it may be one of the u.s. economy's most valuable assets, too. the impact apple is having on the nation's unemployment rate, still ahead. i'm liz crenshaw. have a drafty house? find out how homeowners are getting free help in making their homes energy-efficient. my story is coming up. i was paying too much with cable.

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welcome back. it's not surprising that we get more calls for our younger wednesday's children than we do for teenagers, but their social workers want us to remind you that teens are children, too.

>> that's right. as barbara harrison tells us, for these kids, with every birthday, it gets harder and harder to find that home that they've told us they want so very much. >> all my life, i never had a family to care for me. so, i always wanted adopted. >> i still need somewhere to be where i can feel safe. >> reporter: like many teens in the foster care system, they have been waiting ae for a forever family. >> the older they get, the harder it gets to place the children. >> i would like to have a family that's sweet, nice, you know. >> i really would like to be adopted. >> reporter: sadly, the chances for teens finding adoptive families are slim. >> most people, as you already know, want the infants and the little bitty kids, the toddlers, which is good and sweet, but our teens are still children as well. >> reporter: some of our teenaged wednesday's children were featured when they were still very young, and they had great dreams then about the families they would like to adopt them.

>> they should want to have fun. they should, like, play all the time, like having laughs. >> reporter: and how is keshawn doing now? >> keshawn is still looking for that person to provide her with some type of love and stability. >> reporter: james, too, still waits, while his brother we featured along with him was adopted. >> so, we're doing the best that we can to try to find a home for him. >> reporter: and michelle continues to wait. her twin was adopted, but she wasn't. >> she's just aching, because you know, to see your twin out there in a stable home and not you, that hurts. >> reporter: they all just want a forever home. barbara harrison, news4, for "wednesday's child." >> if you have room in your home and your heart for one of our teenagers waiting and hoping for a forever home, please call our special adoption hotline. the number is 1-88-to-adopt-me. or you can logon to our home page at nbcwashington.com. and a little bit of a cold

front moving our way. >> yes, indeed. a little chillier today than yesterday, and even chillier, i think, coming up tomorrow. so, now, how long is the cold air going to last? we'll talk to you about that in your seven-day forecast in just a couple minutes.

i call it winter. i don't know what you call it. >> i call it the beginning of spring. >> i know, but if anything is in the 40s or -- >> i know. meteorological winter ended at the end of february, and it was the third mildest winter on record in washington. >> wow, unbelievable. >> just crazy stuff. only two inches of snow total for the entire winter. >> wow. >> that puts us in eighth place for the least snowiest winter on record. and if we don't get any more snow, because sometimes we average an inch or two in march, if they don't get any more, it

will be the third least snowiest winter. >> but don't put the coats away yet. >> no. we're not done with the chilly mornings, anyway. out the door on your sunday morning, a mix of clouds and sunshine out there. it'd cooler than yesterday morning. you'll notice the change on your way out. temperatures 30s and 40s this morning with a northwesterly breeze that you're going to notice. out there we look, it's looking very optimistically nice here in our city camera picture now. thicker clouds are just south of washington and there is a veil of thin overcast out there for most, but as you can see, there's enough sunlight getting through now to at least cast some shadows here in the washington area. still a partly to mostly cloudy day, but you'll get little breaks of sunshine from time to time. 42 at national airport, winds from the north-northwest at 14 miles per hour. that's got a little bit of a windchill factor working against us this morning. temperatures around the metro area, low 40s in prince george's county, upper 30s montgomery county, near 40 across most of fairfax county right now and still upper 30s out towards the blue ridge and shenandoah valley. people out there playing soccer at the athletic fields just

there along the side of 395. temperatures today climbing into the upper 40s to near 50. where you live is going to have a big factor on how much sunshine you see. much more cloud cover in southern maryland and more sunshine for you folks out toward the panhandle of west virginia. most of this moisture is going to be staying well offshore. don't need to worry about rain in and around town today. our next little weather system we're following is this alberta clipper, still out across the eastern dakotas and eastern nebraska. it's got a long way to go before it gets here, and it doesn't have an awful lot of moisture to work with. here's how things look today. there's our little thin spots in the overcast coming in for the next couple hours, but there's more clouds to the west and to the south. so, i'm going to go with our mostly cloudy forecast for the rest of the day today. on the cloudy side, any showers staying south of us. cold overnight tonight, 20s and 30s to get your day started tomorrow. then by mid to late morning on your monday, this alberta clipper zipping right along the virginia/north carolina border. if it can just get another 50 or 60 miles further north, we could at least introduce the possibility of snowflakes around town. but as it stands, i think

snowflake chances will stay from about fredericksburg south to richmond and the virginia/north carolina border, and it's going to race out to sea very quickly and clear our skies out as early as late tomorrow afternoon and tomorrow evening. so, for today, more clouds than sunshine, but a few sunny breaks here and there for the lucky ones. highs today upper 40s to near 50. then tomorrow, starting off cloudy and cold and a chance for a little light snowflake or two way south of washington tomorrow, but otherwise, just cloudy and noticeably colder again tomorrow with highs only in the upper 30s 20 low and mid-40s. and our little cold snap here will last for the first half of the workweek. lows below freezing for most locations monday, tuesday and wednesday morning. then wednesday afternoon the south wind returns, puts us up in the upper 50s to near 60. mid-60s for thursday and for friday and a little unsettled weather coming our way towards the end of the week. doesn't look like anything big, but it might be a rain drop or two somewhere late friday into early saturday. we'll keep you posted. >> just enough to ruin the hair. oh, my goodness, i tell you.

chuck, i know you have this problem often. >> yes. >> you think how's this going to affect the do, but you know, things women think about. >> more gray with the gray sky overhead. >> no it looks wonderful. thank you, chuck. >> thanks. >> thanks, chuck. reducing your energy bills never seemed so easy. there's a program that makes homes more energy-efficient, and get this, it's not going to cost you a penny. prince george's county's department of housing and community development partnered with the state of maryland to offer a free weatherization assistance program. news4's liz crenshaw explains how it works. >> i would love to save money. >> reporter: ada austin of prince george's county has lived in her home for 20 years. the cost of cooling and heating it has become a financial strain. >> that's the biggest one, electric. >> reporter: because austin heats her house with an electric heat pump, her drafty home is costing her money and making her cold. that's why she's taking advantage of what's called the weatherization assistance program, and it costs her

nothing. >> it was real easy, because all i did was call. >> this is called a blower door, and we use this blower door to determine how much air is flowing in and out of her home. >> reporter: carlton klegg with prince george's department of housing comes to houses like austin's, determines what's wrong and what needs to be fixed. then the county hires a contractor, like warren brothers construction, that worked on austin's home. >> they will caulk, conceal around windows and doors, put additional insulation in the attics. if pipes were exposed, make sure that the pipes are covered. >> reporter: the county can spend up to $6,500 making these fixes. >> this is to seal up duct work in the utility room. >> reporter: eric brown is the director of prince george's department of housing and community development. >> we pay the contractor. there's no cost to the family. it's all free to the family and it's all legitimate. >> reporter: the money comes through the state of maryland from a grant from the u.s.

department of energy. families whose homes are weatherized see their yearly energy bills cut by an average of $437. >> the idea here is to try to see what we can do to make homes more energy-efficient, to save money for families, particularly the elderly and disabled. >> reporter: who qualifies? elderly and disabled homeowners who meet certain income requirements. so far, prince george's county has helped more than 300 families, and it has about $500,000 left to give away. >> it's a great deal to go through, so they'd better jump on it. >> reporter: liz crenshaw, "news4 today." >> every state and d.c. offers some form of weatherization assistance and has money to spend. you can learn about the weatherization assistance program in your area through our website, nbcwashington.com. all you have to do is search "energy help oith. the time right now is 9:48,

and we have just gotten in the numbers from the latest nbc news/marist poll. just two days ahead of super tuesday, and you won't believe how tight the race is in the most crucial state of all, ohio. we're going to bring you those numbers when we return. and also ahead, it was one of the most anticipated "snl" episodes of the year. we'll show you how lindsay lohan performed on live tv. are you still sleeping? just wanted to check and make sure that we were on schedule. the first technology of its kind... mom and dad, i have great news. is now providing answers families need. siemens. answers.

today, one of the country's largest pro-israel lobbies kicks off its annual conference in what's often called the three most important days of the year for the jewish state. here's a live look at the start of the american/israel public affairs committee or aipac conference going on downtown right now. more than 10,000 people from across the country are in town for that event. president obama and israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu are expected to speak at the conference tomorrow. it is the most sought-after state on super tuesday, and the race for ohio is about as close as it gets. we are just getting the numbers in from the new nbc news/marist poll, and it shows mitt romney and rick santorum neck and neck in the buckeye state. check out these numbers.

santorum actually leads romney by 2 percentage points in the latest poll, well within the margin of error. newt gingrich and ron paul are in a distant third and fourth place. ohio is one of ten states up for grabs this tuesday. the monthly jobs report is set to come out this week, but one company says it's doing everything to lower the unemployment rate. apple claims it has created 514,000 jobs in the united states. they say the number includes those that work directly for the company in retail and corporate positions, and almost half of that number is active developers who have created content for the ipad or the iphone. nbc 4 is your place for politics. coming up next is "the chris matthews show" followed by "meet the press," and here's a look at what they are working on this morning. >> good morning, washington. coming up at 10:00 on "the chris matthews show," the shape of the presidential election was set this week. it will almost certainly be mitt romney versus president obama. obama's ratings are on the rise,

which history says should get him a second term like reagan and clinton, but the obama team has big worries -- gas prices, a stalled jobs picture or even war. today we look at the chances. plus, rush limbaugh's act is all about stirring outrage. will republicans stand up to this guy? join me and bob woodward, kathleen parker, becky quick and major garrett for a great roundtable. now for a look at what's coming up on "meet the press," here's david gregory. david? thanks, chris. good morning, angie and erika. coming up, a special edition of "meet the press." we preview super tuesday. after a win last night in washington and earlier this week in michigan and arizona, can mitt romney emerge as the presumptive republican nominee? also, can newt gingrich wage a comeback in georgia, his home state? the former speaker will join me this morning to discuss the state of his campaign. then, two top party leaders on the fight for the nomination and some of the big issues of the campaign, including the fight over contraception. rush limbaugh apologized for his distasteful comments to a

georgetown law student, but will it end the controversy? house majority leader eric cantor and dnc chair debbie wasserman schultz join me. plus, our "political roundtable" and new exclusive nbc poll numbers, all coming up this morning on "meet the press." and after "meet the press," be sure to stay tuned as we have our special "press pass" conversation. this week, ahead of super tuesday, i sat down with two high-profile pollsters from both parties, mark penn, veteran of the hillary clinton campaign in 2008 and gop strategist whit ayers, only here on nbc 4. >> thank you, david. "the voice" is back. you can watch the next episode of season two tomorrow night at 8:00 p.m. right here on nbc 4 and watch it with your computer on hand, because i, along with big tigger, will be web-chatting throughout the show. and be sure to catch "news4 at 4:00" tomorrow when we'll be joined by the shields brothers. the virginia brothers were hits last week on the show and picked up by c. loe's team. >> we'll see if he breaks out

another purple jacket? >> purple leather jacket. singing in style. lindsay lohan hosted "saturday night live" last night, and the big question was, was she going to make fun of her past legal troubles. >> hmm, let me think about that. well, one skit answered that question with a resounding yes. >> invited two representatives from the scared straight program to come talk to you punks! mcintosh, you want to get in here? >> my name is mcintosh. >> and i'm lindsay lohan. >> lohan poked fun at her numerous run-ins with the law, posing as an inmate in one sketch. she also used her legal troubles as part of her opening monologue. is that a pat-down i see? the "snl" members checked to make sure that she was clean, you know, just in case. just to make sure so they could start the show. >> yeah. in the beginning monologue, she tried to walk around the set, the opening, and they sounded the buzzer like her ankle

bracelet buzzer was going. she's like, i was told i could walk around the studio. they confined her to the one area. >> i figured she would be a good sport about all that. they couldn't do that show without incorporating some of that in the skit. >> and she's the one that requested to be on that show. she was knocking on heir door, so -- >> she was making her rounds. lindsay lohan making a comeback. >> if you can't laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at? >> all right, weather in a word. >> chilly. >> okay, thanks, chuck. thank you for joining us for this edition of "news4 today." make it a wonderful sunday. >> and we'll see you tomorrow morning, "news4 today" begins at 4:30 a.m. until then, have a great one.